Top Thrill Dragster 2022 Status

Wind resistance may factor. Although, I suspect a wider train might affect clearance specifically during the 270° twist.

Not sure if it's been predicted yet, I think they're going to enclose all of TTD, add a meandering space theme about package delivery and re-name it 'Disasthrill Dragsport.' Years from now, when ridership drops, they'll add neon paint and sell 3D glasses for the four 3D posters they've added to the walls in the queue.

I got a couple of “unauthorized” ;) shots of Cedar Point on 11/26 from 25,000 feet. It’s clear that no additional track has been removed from TTD.

Huh, you'd think if the layout were going to change they'd have removed more track by now.

Great pictures. I’m impressed with how blue the water is, how clear the sky is, and how far the TTD shadow stretches. Must have been getting close to sunset?

thanks for sharing.

How would they have removed more track?

They literally removed everything besides the tower and top hat. Any layout addition would happen before or after the launch.

IMO.. pre launch layout makes more sense.

With a bigger crane. And how exactly would a pre-launch layout change work? You need the launch to make it through the layout.

So you're telling me flying my drones is frowned upon, but High Flyer is totally encouraged and applauded? Double standards, anyone? Someone PLEASE inform me of the acceptable altitude threshold... /sarcasm winky face

Great pics :)

Augustmueller:

Must have been getting close to sunset?

Right around 2pm, actually.

Dvo:

So you're telling me flying my drones is frowned upon, but High Flyer is totally encouraged and applauded? Double standards, anyone? Someone PLEASE inform me of the acceptable altitude threshold

High Flyer, at 25k, was in a manned aircraft in class A airspace and not over the park (not that it would have mattered), Carry on. ;)

djDaemon:

Huh, you'd think if the layout were going to change they'd have removed more track by now.

Lol, dude, you are going to look so silly when they convert TTD to an inverted coaster. Just you wait.

I'm trying to remember how much of Phantom's Revenge is the original Arrow track, IIRC it's just the station track and lift hill. Assuming the remainder of TTD's layout remains unchanged, it'll be interesting as TTD 2.0 would basically have the inverse track replacement as Phantom's Revenge (de novo station and propulsion track, original layout track, versus original station and propulsion track, de novo layout track) if that made any sense.

Makes sense indeed. You are correct with the Phantom, only miss-mentioning the original transfer table and “parking” track also still exist.

Augustmueller:

and how far the TTD shadow stretches.

I dunno how you can possibly see its shadow with all the dormant trees in the way.

NextGen89:

IMO.. pre launch layout makes more sense.

So how does that work, exactly? Where are they going to fit in additional elements while maintaining enough launch track to get to ~120MPH?

If there is going to be a launch like what's on Pantheon (is it called a swing launch?), where it launches forward, backward, and then forward again, then all of the layout changes would be before the tophat.

I would imagine they would have to build a spike, maybe an airtime hill like what we see on Pantheon.

My brother and I have talked about it, This double launch may be necessary to get all the way up to 110-120 MPH depending on how powerful LSM Launches can be. Has the tech advanced enough to get the proper speed in the current launch track? (Personally, I'm more skeptical of this happening currently, but that's just what I think).

So how does this new swing launch track physically align with the station track (which isn't going anywhere) and also with the tophat track (which is also not going anywhere)?

And since the back spike of this swing launch track needs a radius between it and horizontal track, how many passes would be needed to get to ~120MPH?

And what impact will all of this have on capacity?

Iron Dragon is fully in the path of a theoretical back spike.. unless that back spike is moved forward of the current station within the layout.

(perhaps that’s not TTDs shadow touching lake Erie. based on Windseeker’s shadow, I’m assuming it is)

That Crazy Dan:
I'm trying to remember how much of Phantom's Revenge is the original Arrow track, IIRC it's just the station track and lift hill.

ORIGINALLY, the Arrow track extended from the uptrack end of the transfer table, through the station, up the lift hill, down the first drop, up to the top of the second hill, and a short way down the second drop.

More recently they replaced everything from the top of the lift to the original transition point, and in the process completely screwed up the transition at the top of the second hill. Then they came back and more or less fixed the top of the second hill, although it still isn't quite as fluid as the Arrow track was (?!).

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

RideMan:

and in the process completely screwed up the transition at the top of the second hill.

Ha! Yes, the second round of Arrow track replacement, as I recall, was outsourced to a local fabrication shop and not from Morgan. Something about the track rails weren’t attached to the cross ties at the appropriate locations. Which was “corrected” during the off season.